We will fight party members who preach tribalism - NPP youth

The youth wing of the New Patriotic Party in the Eastern Region has threatened to vehemently fight party heavyweights who campaign or make issues of their tribal leanings.

Describing recent happenings in the party as a worrisome situation, the party's youth at a press conference in the regional capital, Koforidua, noted tribal comments ruin the progress of the party and endangers the future of the youth.

This comes at the backdrop of recent comments by leading members of the party including Dr. Nayaho Nyaho Tamakloe and Paul Afoko, a national chairman aspirant arguing, the NPP has always chosen its leadership based on tribal lines.

The Eastern Regional Youth Organizer of the NPP, Jerry Osei-Poku, who addressed the press said: “As youths of the great NPP, we believe we are stakeholders of the party just as they are, and those of us youthful people in the party holds the party at our hearts.

“We will not sit down for any individual to ruin the progress that we want to make for our party and our nation. If any individual thinks because he is contesting and has to win and for that matter he is going to preach these tribal games, some of us will fight it,’’ he warned.

According to Mr. Osei-Poku, the situation whereby party members place the party in a bad light to their advantage without the necessary basis are baseless.

"It is rather unfortunate that people who call themselves leading members of the party have waded into this debate and also try to castigate the party in terms of the formation of our vetting committee without even having the necessary basis are bogus, in fact they are baseless and have no foundation so far as the NPP constitution is concerned,’’ he stated.

The youth organizer challenged such persons to conduct themselves to merit their acclaimed leading party member status.

‘’And if they call themselves leading members they have to behave, their actions, speeches and everything that they do must fall in that line. For you to come out and accuse the party or the vetting committee to be towing a tribal line, you give some of us the opportunity to also question why you are coming from that angle.

Mr.Osei-Poku also challenged all persons seeking executive positions to advance superior arguments if they want to win elections and stay away from preaching tribalism.

‘’If you go round campaigning tell the delegates what you can do to help our party win political power and not because you belong to a certain ethnic group should be the basis for us voting for you.

“The party needs political power to salvage the country from these economic quagmires’’, he explained.